Method for decorating lasts



Feb. 3, 1942. w. P. MANLEY 2,271,833

METHOD FOR DECORATING'LASTS Filed Jan. 9, 1940 INVENTOR. W|l||dm PManley B k i I z ATTORNEYS.

Patented Feb. 3, 1942 IWETHOD FOR DECORATING LASTS William P. Manley,Portsmouth, Ohio, assignor to Vulcan Corporation Application January 9,1940, Serial No. 313,083

2 Claims.

This invention relates to a method of decorating shoe lasts and has forits chief object to enhance the appearance thereof, thereby todemonstrate more forcefully its styling and attractiveness.

A further object of the invention is to provide a last having arepresentation of a shoe thereon to thus demonstrate more effectivelythe style and fit which the last will impart to a shoe built thereon. H

Another object of the invention is to provide a last which will provevaluable to retail shoe merchants for window display and otherdemonstration purposes.

A further object of the invention is to provide a last for demonstrationpurposes which is caused to assume the correct posture of a foot whenWearing a shoe which has been constructed upon the last.

Other objects of the invention will more fully appear from the followingdescription in connection with the accompanying drawing and will bepointed out specifically in the appended claims.

To enjoy a better understanding of the invention, a detaileddescriptionof a selected embodiment thereof will now be presented, inwhich:

Fig. 1 illustrates a last processed in accordance with the principles ofthe invention- Fig. 2 illustratesthe masking step in the meth- The stepsof the process embodied in the present invention are executedsubsequently tothe completion of the shaping and smoothing operation, asaccomplished in the regular course of producing lasts, using standardequipment found in a last manufacturing plant. However, the

block or one-piece type of last fulfills the purposes of the inventionto best advantage.

In producing lasts for the purposes of the invention, however, a widerchoice of material is available. In the case where a last manufacturerdesires to produce his lasts of hard maple in the same manner as thosehe would manufac- The total cost of production, therefore, would be Thelast is then given a protective coating of a suitable coating material,such as lacquer, varnish, etc. This coating may be applied over thewhole surface of the last or may be applied to those portions of thelast which will remain uncovered by the decorating process. The natureof the coating material may vary according to the specific requirement,but it need notbe of 'the same type as that employed in finishing a lastdesigned to be used in production. The object of this coating is to givethe last a finished appearance and need not be sufilciently durable towithstand the hard usage to which. a last is subjected in production.Such a finish may be selected with a view to reducing costs below thatof the finish applied to'a production last.

An appropriate heel is then selectedand at.- tached to the last. Thisheel should have the proper height to cause the last to assume itsnormal position with respect to the tread surface. With the heelattached to the last, it is rendered self-supporting and will rest in afirm position on a fiat surface and illustrate the normal position ofthe foot of the'wea'rer of a shoe constructed upon th last.

A valuable feature which may be incorporated into the invention toadvantage is the use of lasts other than normal, full-scalereproductions, as for example, a normal size 4 last may be reduced toone-half scale.

by reason of its unusual appearance. Such a last has a certain dramaticappeal which it would not, otherwise possess. with the other features ofthe invention creates an article which has demonstrative power greatlyin excess of the ordinary undecorated production last.

, To further increase the appeal of the last and heel combination, anattractive design may be applied, by the application of coating materialthereon, of a contrasting color or hue. A desirable form of design wouldbe the outline and pattern of a shoe. Assuming that the design to beplaced on the last is a simulation of a shoe, it is applied to the lastin the following manner: The selected design 5 is drawn, traced orotherwise marked upon the last to indicate the outline of a shoe and thepattern of its decoration. A mask or system of masks 6 is now preparedand applied to the last, covering those areas not covered by a shoe ofthe design selected. The mask conforms to the outline previously markedthere- Such a drastic reduc- I tion from normal size tends to arrestattention This small'size coupled may outline a suitable design on ashoe without having to first mark the pattern thereof on the last. Themasking material is preferably of that type which has an adhesive base,which may be applied to a surface by pressure only and may at any timebe readily removed without injuring the surface to which it was applied.

While the masking may be applied in any suitable manner, it is desirableto employ a special technique. For example, to facilitate theapplication of the masking material, a plurality of relatively narrowstrips of the material are used. These strips of material can readily beapplied to smoothly cover the contours of the last and by over-lapping anumber of short strips and applying them at the most convenient angles,the areas to be masked are readily and thoroughly covered with a minimumof effort. The most exacting part of the process is that of establishingsmooth, clean cut edges for defining the pattern. Toinsure smooth andrapid progress in defining the desired pattern, a quite narrow strip ofmasking tape is first applied at the line of the pattern to be created.This narrow strip, because of its greater flexibility, may readily bemade to conformto the curve or other configuration of the pattern.

In Fig. 2, the narrow strip 8 is shown applied to the last along theoutline of a design. This narrow strip is applied first, then having thedesign outlined properly, wider strips 9 of masking material are appliedin over-lapping relation upon the last, thereby to quickly cover thearea to be masked, and insure that it will be impervious to thesubsequently applied coating material. Small areas, such as the cut-outportions II] of the shoe design are formed by cutting small pieces Hfrom the masking material and applying them to the last in their correctposition.

A coating material is then applied to the uncovered portions of thelast. This coating may be applied in any convenient manner, such as bymeans of spraying in the manner indicated in Fig. 3. One or severalcoats of this spray material may be applied. Preferably, sufficient material should be applied to produce a layer of substantial thickness. Arelatively heavy layer is desirable, not only to increase durability,but the effectiveness of the illusion of the shoe upon the last is muchincreased, as will appear hereinafter. Another feature which may beemployed to enhance the appearance of the last is to apply a coating offiock upon the portions of the last included in the design or upon aportion of the design only. This is done by applying a coating ofmaterial which will not harden too rapidly and while the coating istacky, applying the flock thereto. In this manner, a very strikingsimulation of suede leather is created.

After the coating material is dried, the mask is then removed and if arelatively thick coating has been applied, the mask will have molded anedge face 12 all around the shoe outline, which projects outwardly fromthe normal plane of the last surface. This edge presents the apon. Afterconsiderable experience, an operator pearance of a layer of material ofrelatively substantial thickness. This effect is increased by a slightcapillary action which builds up the edge thickness of the coating atthe marginal edges of the mask, while the coating material is in aliquid state. The coating on the last thus creates a strong impressionof a shoe fitted thereon. Innumerable attractive effects may be createdby this method. Colors of any hue or shade may be used and designsemployed embracing any type of shoe or any design which will enhance theappearance of the last.

The present invention provides the manufacturer of a last with a meansfor presenting its product having a unique sales appeal. Further more,the retail shoe dealer may employ this invention to inform the public ofthe manner in which the beauty, grace of line and the healthful fit ofhis shoes is built into products which he sells. The means embodied inthis invention for presenting and demonstrating the close relationbetween the shoe and the last upon which it is made, constitutes a mosteffective educational medium to bridge the gap which exists in the mindsof the general public as to what deter-. mines the fit and gracefullines of the shoes they wear. With this knowledge, the public will alsobe made to realize the important part a last plays in producing a highquality shoe. Coupled with the relatively low cost of manufacturing,demonstration lasts prepared by the method of the present inventionconstitute a valuable asset to both the last manufacturer and the retailshoe merchant.

I claim:

1. A method of simulating a shoe upon a last comprising attaching a heelto the last, applying a narrow stripof pressure adhesive maskingmaterial to the last in a manner to cause the edge thereof to outlinethe shoe representation, applying additional strips of masking materialwith their marginal edges in over-lapping relation to cover the largerareas of the last not to be included in the shoe representation and notcovered by the initial strip, applying by spraying, a relatively thicklayer of coating material upon the last, drying the layer and removingthe mask whereby the coating material, will present the appearance of ashoe fitted to the last.

2. A method of simulating a shoe upon a last comprising applying uponthe last a system of pressure adherent masks to cover those areas of thelasts not included in the representation, that part of the maskingsystem which covers the larger areas being covered with a plurality ofnarrow strips, the initial strip being applied with its edge definingthe shoe outline and subsequent strips with their margins over-lapping,applying by spraying, a relatively thick layer of coating material tothe last and removing the system of masks, thereby to present arepresentation of a shoe which is raised from the nor- WILLIAM P.MANLEY.

